What do you do when there ‘seems’ to be no answer from the Lord in your current situation? Would you still remain committed to God? Would you still have a level of trust in the Lord without any bitterness against Him? In this passage, we see three characters from the book of Ruth, who respond very differently to God’s providence in their lives. Their responses teach us what genuine commitment to God looks like.
God abundantly blesses those who seek to live obedient lives. Obedient living does not allow for “accidents” in God’s plan. He orchestrates events in our lives to bring us to Himself, even through our misery and hopelessness. In the book of Ruth, we see Him working out His perfect plan in Ruth’s life, just as He does with all His children.
Every Christian is called to suffer and to expect persecution in this life. The Bibles places such expectation because God knows that we live in a sinful world among fallen people, who do not like to worship The true and living God of the Bible. In this passage, we learn how we can respond during persecution.
The God of the Bible is a promise keeping God, therefore our hope shouldn’t be dependent on our ability to manage life, or our distorted commitment to God, but on His faithful and unending commitment to us.
As human beings, we all experience stress, anxiety, fear and worry. This is also a reminder that we cannot control everything in our lives. This reveals our limitation, but also should point us to the God of the Bible. In this passage, we learn through the trials of David, how to handle stress in a way God commands.
Every local church is a collection of individual church members. Therefore, fostering a healthy church depends in some measure on fostering healthy church members who understand the centrality of living and working together as one body for the glory of God. Most importantly, it requires members of the church to live out the implications of the gospel within the context of a local community.
Church Discipline is disciplinary act from the elders of the church to rebuke, correct and restore a person from a sinful lifestyle in order to prevent the soul from further damage. It is a way of bringing back the prodigal into the fellowship of God and believers. In this passage, we learn why and how we need to practice church discipline.
We don’t often hear people talking about being content today. When we do, it’s often in terms of what would be ideal rather than characteristic of our lives. In this passage, Paul gives an explanation of how he has labored for contentment in Christ and in the worst of circumstances he can have joy, since his circumstances could never give him the fulfillment he seeks anyway, he seeks to be content in the person of Jesus Christ.
The Bible does not just merely suggests us to tithe and give to those who are needy, but it commands us to give to the service of God’s church. We are called to give and be generous because it is a way of glorifying God and also a way of reflecting His character in our lives. God the Father had willfully and cheerfully given His only Son to be sacrificed on the cross to redeem us. So giving is in the very fabric of the gospel, and so should it be with those who believe the gospel and live the implications of it in their lives.
Roman Catholic Church’s official position is that Jesus’ mother Mary remained a virgin for her entire life (perpetual virginity). The bible never affirms that, and instead notes about her children who came after Jesus. So Catholic church gives an inordinate amount of importance (and even worship) to Mary. Sometimes the opposite reaction in protestant churches to completely dismiss Mary’s life and godly character can be an extreme or incorrect position to hold. In this passage, we learn who is Mary, and what lessons we can learn from her submission to God.